Carbuncles from Canada

Posted on June 26, 2024 by Luana

Today I am sharing the Best of Show from Quilt Canada in Edmonton last week:

“Weir Fishing” by Debora Barlow, Saskatoon

This wildlife scenic quilt was inspired by a photo by Jeff Lyons, who gave Debora permission to use his image. The quilt is collaged and layered using Debora’s hand-dyes and organza to create the shimmering textural background. Then she layered light gray organza and solid navy to achieve the impression of depth in the water, and the imagery of the birds’ feet.

This piece has a little bit of everything!
Hand applique, fused applique and raw edge applique. Cotton, linen, silk, organza, wool batting, and glass bead collage. It was machine-quilted. You can go to my photo page to see detail shots of this stunning quilt.

As I have mentioned before, I really enjoy the wildlife and landscape quilts at the shows in Canada. This is a great example and it happens to depict the American White Pelican. 10% of the world’s population of this bird live in Ontario, but live and breed across Canada including British Columbia. These large (heavy) water birds are listed as a threatened species in some areas of North America. They migrate south in the winter, and we enjoy flocks of these great birds as they travel through Colorado in the spring and fall. I appreciate that Debora included the distinctive carbuncle (bump on the bill) which grows anew each year during mating season. Apparently this is an attractive physical trait for a prospective pelican partner. *wink* Who knew?

The backdrop on the collage image above shows beach and shell prints currently in stock at eQuilter.com. A reminder that we have silk habotai, charmeuse, chiffon and silk gauze in stock for those of you who love to paint and print on these dreamy fabrics. Textile artists will find tulle and cheesecloth in this other category…great for layering and creating unique textures!

Sharing your love of fabric…
Luana and Paul

Visit eQuilter’s Instagram, Pinterest or TikTok pages for Color and Design ideas.

Follow Luana’s Flickr Photo Pages for quilt & travel images, review our blog, or follow us on Facebook.

Check out our Video pages for interviews and show reviews.

Subscribe to Luana’s Artist Website blog for more creative inspiration.

Travel/Quilt Dates:
June 27-28 – Intl Quilt Museum, Lincoln NE
July 29 – Aug 5 – Festival of Quilts, Birmingham UK
August 27-31 – Speaker at World Wilderness Congress, Rapid City SD
December 5-13 – Textile & Costume Tour – Italy. Alpine Xmas Market Extension Dec 13-15.

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Returning from Quilt Canada

Posted on June 22, 2024 by Luana

As you read this newsletter, I am flying back home from Quilt Canada in Edmonton. The convention center sits on the side of a steep hill, and it has long steep escalators and a funicular instead of an elevator. It is a fun ride down the escalators under the crystal structure, surrounded by tropical plants, with a stunning view of the river. As an added bit of fun, the town was full of Oilers fans for the Stanley cup final!

Coming to Quilt Canada is always such a pleasure. There is so much talent up here, and in particular I love the themes of the Arctic lifestyle, the indigenous people, the northern wildlife, and the Aurora Borealis. I photographed the show, and I’ll be editing those photos in the next week and sharing them soon. It is also wonderful to meet so many of our customers here as I walk around the show floor, plus old friends in the industry and some of the incredible talented artists in Canada. There was a Modern Quilt Guild gathering, I had dinner with the founder of Quilts for Survivors, and lunch with a previous ‘Best of Show’ artist. I’ll tell you more about this in my Wednesday Creative Nudge newsletter.

Next weekend I am taking a very short trip up to the International Quilt Museum in Lincoln Nebraska. I am anxious to see the shows in their galleries now!

Now it is time for me to close my laptop and head for the airport. I hope you are having a wonderful creative weekend. I’ll be sewing tomorrow!

sharing your love for fabric,
Luana and Paul

Travel/Quilt Dates:
June 27-28 – Intl Quilt Museum, Lincoln NE
July 29 – Aug 5 – Festival of Quilts, Birmingham UK
August 27-31 – Speaker at World Wilderness Congress, Rapid City SD
December 5-13 – Textile & Costume Tour – Italy. Alpine Xmas Market Extension Dec 13-15.

Visit eQuilter’s Instagram, Pinterest or TikTok pages for Color and Design ideas.

See Luana’s Flickr Photo Pages for travel images, comment on our blog, or follow us on Facebook.

Check out our Video pages for interviews and show reviews.

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Free Quilt Pattern – Egyptian Cleo and Tut

Posted on June 20, 2024 by Luana

Even though Queen Cleopatra & King Tut lived over a millennia apart, they’re lovingly joined together here at eQuilter in our exclusive fantasy panel.
Tonight’s Free eQuilter Pattern features this spectacular panel along with coordinating Egyptian Gods fabrics, all meticulously detailed in hues of topaz, jade & ginger gold.

To make this generous 73″ x 73 quilt pattern, you’ll frame the majestic panel with the Egyptian Gods panel and engineered border stripe. The colors really shine against the solid Kona black borders. This picturesque quilt makes a wonderful gift for world travelers and admirers of Egyptian Art.

…from the ‘Egyptian’ collection by the Rubin Design Studio, designed exclusively for eQuilter.

PLUS – you’ll receive Free USA / 50% off INTL shipping
when you order the fabrics for this exquisite quilt pattern
(orders $100 and over, no coupon needed).

Order the pattern as configured, or customize it to your liking with any of our thousands of fabrics. Just place your desired fabrics in your Wish List, and these fabrics will appear in the Fabric Selector below the pattern.

Click Here for a Video Tutorial of the Free Pattern Designer.
Download Instructions for the pattern at the bottom of the pattern designer page.

Sharing your passion for fabric and color,
Luana and Paul Rubin

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Happy Days

Posted on June 19, 2024 by Luana

I read an interesting article today about inheriting generational or genetic memories. Not sure if they have ‘proved’ this yet, but I am pretty sure it exists in my family tree. At the very least, I know that the summertime memories of my mother overlapped with my childhood memories, and then my kids’ summer time explorations.

My mom lived on a farm as a little girl, rode her horse bareback to school, jumped in a gentle river from a tire swing to stay cool, and picked berries to make money. Her love of horses, swimming and berries definitely became part of my own childhood memories. Some version of that got passed on to my kids too. My grandmother had a huge organic vegetable garden, and planted flowering bushes outside of bedroom windows. My mom did that too…I had a lilac bush outside my bedroom window as a kid. When we moved into this house, I planted perennials, bushes and trees that would flower year-round. My grandma also grew rhubarb and made the most fabulous strawberry-rhubarb pies. I haven’t learned how to make them, but I love a slice of rhubarb or berry pie in the summertime!

Perhaps you are indulging in the nostalgic equivalent of summer comfort food as well. Repeating those summer rituals brings us closer to our mothers, grandmothers, and others who helped to create those precious memories. The climbing roses I planted years ago on the stone wall next to our front door, are also a memory of my grandmother. Their fragrance greets me in the summertime, and it is almost like my grandma is there to wrap me in a perfumed hug…just like a quilt. I love to choose fabrics that bring back those memories, and then put them in a quilt. You too?

Last week on Textile Talks, Teri Walker gave an excellent lecture on activist quilts. She included a few of my quilts, and a few of my quotes. If you have time, I hope you will enjoy this recording. These weekly talks are FREE, and the recordings are all online.

When you read this, I’ll be on my way up to Quilt Canada in Edmonton, Alberta.

Hope to see many of you in Edmonton this week. If you see me, please do come up and say hello! I am there to photograph the show, and I will share photos with all of you when I return.

Sharing your love of fabric…
Luana and Paul

Visit eQuilter’s Instagram, Pinterest or TikTok pages for Color and Design ideas.

Follow Luana’s Flickr Photo Pages for quilt & travel images, review our blog, or follow us on Facebook.

Check out our Video pages for interviews and show reviews.

Subscribe to Luana’s Artist Website blog for more creative inspiration.

Travel/Quilt Dates:
June 19-22 – Quilt Canada, Edmonton
June 27-28 – Intl Quilt Museum, Lincoln NE
July 29 – Aug 5 – Festival of Quilts, Birmingham UK
August 27-31 – Speaker at World Wilderness Congress, Rapid City SD
December 5-13 – Textile & Costume Tour – Italy. Alpine Xmas Market Extension Dec 13-15.

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Donuts With Sprinkles

Posted on June 15, 2024 by Luana

This week we are celebrating Juneteenth and the Summer Solstice. I’ll be marking the official start of summer Thursday afternoon, at a higher latitude … in Edmonton in Alberta, Canada. Hope to see several of you Canadian quilters at the award ceremony Wednesday evening!

As we head into Summer’s most intense heat, especially for those of you in the Southern states, it is a good time to set up a sewing station in the basement to stay cool. Or you might take a siesta in the afternoon and sew late at night. (That’s what my friends in Andalusia do in these ‘hot oven’ months.) Either way, we quilters are resourceful, and we find ways to keep busy in the heat or the cold of winter.

I finally broke down and watched a couple episodes of Bridgerton Season 3 to see what all the fuss is about. Oh my. It is like a box full of donuts from VooDoo Donuts, and they all have too many sprinkles. Recently I watched an interview with the costume designers which piqued my interest. Well, now I know. *snort*

For those of you who DO like lots of sprinkles, we have this group of prints for YOU.
Here is the Batik version of the Bridgerton pastels.
And here is the dark side of the Batik sprinkles.
And of course you know we have TONS of pastel blenders in stock in our Color Palette categories.
(Scroll down on this Master page)
Have fun!

sharing your love for fabric,
Luana and Paul

Travel/Quilt Dates:
June 19-22 – Quilt Canada, Edmonton
June 27-28 – Intl Quilt Museum, Lincoln NE
July 29 – Aug 5 – Festival of Quilts, Birmingham UK
August 27-31 – Speaker at World Wilderness Congress, Rapid City SD
December 5-13 – Textile & Costume Tour – Italy. Alpine Xmas Market Extension Dec 13-15.

Visit eQuilter’s Instagram, Pinterest or TikTok pages for Color and Design ideas.

See Luana’s Flickr Photo Pages for travel images, comment on our blog, or follow us on Facebook.

Check out our Video pages for interviews and show reviews.

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Chillin’ with St Nick

Posted on June 12, 2024 by Luana

It is going to hit 95 degrees this week, which seems like a good time to talk about chilly Winter scenes and holiday fabrics. We just literally got this new exclusive panel in Tuesday, with St Nicholas and arctic animals set in a snowy backdrop. These floofs are so freakin’ cute, I just had to share with you today!

If you are a fan of Textile Talks, please tune in to the online lecture today at 12 pm MDT/ 2 pm EDT by Teri Walker, which will feature one (or more?) of my activist quilts. If you miss the presentation, you can always watch the recording later.

I’ve spent a lot of time with Teri discussing my environmental-themed quilts, and the general topic of activist art quilts. We share a passion for art with a message that inspires others to take action, or at least encourages viewers to think about a topic. My latest piece is called “Children of War” and will preview with the Sacred Threads exhibit in Houston this Fall. My other environmental quilt about endangered pollinators will be in the SAQA ‘Camouflage” exhibit in Houston. I hope you will watch out for these pieces if you go.

Next week I am going to Quilt Canada in Edmonton, Alberta. Traveling up north to this show has become one of my favorite annual trips, and I just love the beautiful quilts created by Canadian quilters. They have such a special quality and it is clear that these makers have a close connection to the wildlife, the dramatic landscapes and coastal areas, and the indigenous peoples.

Here are my photos from Quilt Canada in Halifax last summer. Many of these quilts go on to win top prizes and cash awards in Houston and other quilt festivals. I’ll be sure to take lots of photos at Quilt Canada 2024, and share with you when I get back!

Last month I traveled to London and Kent, and while based in Canterbury with friends, we took day trips out to research some textile history in castles and cathedrals. (Similar to what we’ll be doing on my Textile & Costume Italy Tour in December.) I’ve uploaded my first batch of photos from Canterbury. You’ve probably heard something about the history of Geoffrey Chaucer, and Thomas Becket, from this medieval town. You can check out the Canterbury photos here, and watch for another batch soon from the castles. In case you missed my interview with Cas Holmes (British textile artist) last week, here is the link to the video. Enjoy!

Sharing your love of fabric…
Luana and Paul

Visit eQuilter’s Instagram, Pinterest or TikTok pages for Color and Design ideas.

Follow Luana’s Flickr Photo Pages for quilt & travel images, review our blog, or follow us on Facebook.

Check out our Video pages for interviews and show reviews.

Subscribe to Luana’s Artist Website blog for more creative inspiration.

Travel/Quilt Dates:
June 19-22 – Quilt Canada, Edmonton
June 27-28 – Intl Quilt Museum, Lincoln NE
July 29 – Aug 5 – Festival of Quilts, Birmingham UK
August 27-31 – Speaker at World Wilderness Congress, Rapid City SD
December 5-13 – Textile & Costume Tour – Italy. Alpine Xmas Market Extension Dec 13-15.

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World Ocean Day

Posted on June 8, 2024 by Luana

It’s “Thunder-Boomer” season here in Colorado, which means we have storm clouds rolling over the mountains onto the plains most afternoons, and then they turn into thunderstorms with rain and often hail as they travel out across Eastern Colorado. Our electricity is flickering as I write to you on this late Saturday afternoon. The rain is welcome after a hot week. When I arrived at the office there was a group of hummingbirds zipping around our flowers and trees out front….which is a delight!

Today we celebrate another part of the natural world – it is World Ocean Day – and so I’d like to highlight our 2 Ocean-themed categories:

Fish, Dolphins, Turtles & Shells
and
Lighthouses & Beach, Boats & Mermaids
plus this new Whale Batik.

We have plenty of customers who live in coastal areas, and the rest of us like to vacation at the beach, so it is a popular topic! If Tropical Island vacations are more your speed, you will enjoy these designs with the island va-cay vibe.

While we are talking Island Vibe, check out this new pattern for a cool casual CAFTAN! I can see this in one of those large scale tropical prints, or one of our rayon prints or batiks.

For many years I took the kids to visit Paul’s family in Hawaii, including his aunt and uncle who would go snorkeling at dawn every Friday, at Hanauma Bay. The kids all had the experience of snorkeling on the coral reef, which embedded a love of marine life and underwater habitats. We went on many whale cruises and had the thrill of seeing whales, dolphins and sea turtles during those years. If you’ve experienced these wondrous sea creatures up close, you will understand why we’ve curated these groups of fabrics to share with you. Happy Ocean Day!

sharing your love for fabric,
Luana and Paul

Travel/Quilt Dates:
June 19-22 – Quilt Canada, Edmonton
June 27-28 – Intl Quilt Museum, Lincoln NE
July 29 – Aug 5 – Festival of Quilts, Birmingham UK
August 27-31 – Speaker at World Wilderness Congress, Rapid City SD
December 5-13 – Textile & Costume Tour – Italy. Alpine Xmas Market Extension Dec 13-15.

Visit eQuilter’s Instagram, Pinterest or TikTok pages for Color and Design ideas.

See Luana’s Flickr Photo Pages for travel images, comment on our blog, or follow us on Facebook.

Check out our Video pages for interviews and show reviews.

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Free Quilt Pattern – Dragon’s Realm

Posted on June 6, 2024 by Luana

Tonight’s Free eQuilter Pattern features a mighty dragon perched on a rocky mountain peak. Fans of Game of Thrones & House of the Dragon will love this bold mythical theme, in powerful rainbow colors.

To make this magnificent 58″ x 71″ design, you’ll combine the dramatic 36″ x 44″ panel with coordinating legend blocks and stripe. The bright hues are accentuated by the solid black background.

This breathtaking quilt design will have a commanding presence as a wall hanging, or make it into a Lap/Nap quilt for an escape into fantasy flying dreams on the back of your own fierce dragon!

…from the ‘Dragon Fyre’ collection by Morris Creative Group for Quilting Treasures.

PLUS – you’ll receive Free USA / 50% off INTL shipping
when you order the fabrics for this exquisite quilt pattern
(orders $100 and over, no coupon needed).

Order the pattern as configured, or customize it to your liking with any of our thousands of fabrics. Just place your desired fabrics in your Wish List, and these fabrics will appear in the Fabric Selector below the pattern.

Click Here for a Video Tutorial of the Free Pattern Designer.
Download Instructions for the pattern at the bottom of the pattern designer page.

Sharing your passion for fabric and color,
Luana and Paul Rubin

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Summer Stitchin’

Posted on June 5, 2024 by Luana

Recently I took a short trip to England, and while I was there I was delighted to visit the home and studio of artist/author Cas Holmes in Maidstone. We recorded an intimate tour of her studio, and interview about her work, which I hope you will enjoy. I am featuring a detail of her hand-stitched piece “Derek’s Garden”, plus her book currently in stock. We just love her books because they have a yummy cloth cover with lots if visual inspiration inside.

As I am sure you are aware, embroidery has made a huge comeback. My grandmother was an embroidery artist so I have several treasured pieces of her work. I collected Sashiko-stitched pieces during the years I traveled to the Tokyo Quilt Festival. The Slow Stitch movement was amplified during the pandemic, and now there are many online groups producing and sharing a wide range of embroidered/hand-stitched works, from traditional to sassy. The Modern Quilt movement has its own version of Big Stitch treatments, and many makers are enthusiastically pursuing folk art and ethnic embroidery traditions. All of this can be included in our quilts, our garments, and our fiber art.

Over the past several years we have been expanding our selection of threads for those who love to embellish with big stitching. I am also featuring here, the perle #8 in several color collections from Wonderfil. Whether you like to embellish with Sashiko Thread, Perle 8, Hand-Dyed Japanese Embroidery Floss or imported Metallic threads…you’ll have fun considering the options in this category.

You can’t do hand-stitching without those big stitch needles, and there are a smorgasbord of thimbles available these days for the serious stitcher. As you know, the Japanese quilters are famous for their hand-stitching and hand applique, so many of these specialty thimbles are imported from Japan.

Summertime is a great time to put together a hand-stitching kit to take along on a road trip. Personally I like putting my embroidery stash in a vintage metal lunchbox, like I had as a kid. I was inspired to do this when I sat next to historian Barbara Brackman at a quilty luncheon, and she whipped out her hand applique project. We had a nice chatty whispered gossip session while she fished needle and threads out of her vintage lunchbox.

If you don’t have a 1960s metal lunchbox, the next best thing for a travel kit, is Yazzi Craft Organizers, which are often trimmed and embellished by their owners to reflect their own personal crafty interests. Personally I am just crazy about our Hand-Dyed Rainbow Rickracks, and our colorful Button collections, to decorate bags, garments and artsy wall hangings.

In closing I would like to express my sorrow at the sudden loss of Ellen Brown, the director at Timeless Treasures Fabrics in New York. She has been a true friend and supporter of eQuilter for 25 years, and we send our deepest condolences to her family and staff.

Sharing your love of fabric…
Luana and Paul

Visit eQuilter’s Instagram, Pinterest or TikTok pages for Color and Design ideas.

Follow Luana’s Flickr Photo Pages for quilt & travel images, review our blog, or follow us on Facebook.

Check out our Video pages for interviews and show reviews.

Subscribe to Luana’s Artist Website blog for more creative inspiration.

Travel/Quilt Dates:
June 19-22 – Quilt Canada, Edmonton
June 27-28 – Intl Quilt Museum, Lincoln NE
July 29 – Aug 5 – Festival of Quilts, Birmingham UK
August 27-31 – Speaker at World Wilderness Congress, Rapid City SD
December 5-13 – Textile & Costume Tour – Italy. Alpine Xmas Market Extension Dec 13-15.

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Free Quilt Pattern – Love You Fur-Ever

Posted on June 2, 2024 by Luana

For those of us who live with pets, we know that our special Kitties and Doggies fill our hearts with love and caring. This week’s exclusive eQuilter Free Quilt Pattern is a sweet celebration of All-Things-Pets, for all of us who just need our Dogs & Cats and our Fabric Stash to keep us happy.

To make this charming 50″ x 50″ quilt design, you will start with the 24″ x 44″ panel for the center and corner blocks, and piece the engineered valentine stripe for the borders. Add coordinates Hugs and Kisses print for the sashing and binding. This Lap/Nap quilt is sure to be your pet’s favorite new place to hang out!

…from the ‘Love You Fur-Ever’ collection by Kanvas Studio for Benartex Fabrics.

PLUS – you’ll receive Free USA / 50% off INTL shipping
when you order the fabrics for this exquisite quilt pattern
(orders $100 and over, no coupon needed).

Order the pattern as configured, or customize it to your liking with any of our thousands of fabrics. Just place your desired fabrics in your Wish List, and these fabrics will appear in the Fabric Selector below the pattern.

Click Here for a Video Tutorial of the Free Pattern Designer.
Download Instructions for the pattern at the bottom of the pattern designer page.

Sharing your passion for fabric and color,
Luana and Paul Rubin

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